One of my readers, though, is stickler for the strictest form of showing not telling. However if a word stands out, or if the narrator would not use the word then slash it. IMO using these words in a subtle manner that flows with the writers style could paint a picture for the audience. I’ve read so many characters with hyperactive eyebrows at this point, I’d much rather read about a character’s bug eyed face. Unpublished Guy on Febru11:54 Manges, how is saying his eyebrows arched or she pressed her lips together make anything any better.“His eyebrows arched.” “She pressed her lips together.” It’s easy to come up with these just be visual instead of - what - adverbial? Nice list, but I think someone may say that the use of such terms is ‘telling,’ not ‘showing.’įor a change of pace, I try to use descriptions, e.g., “The corners of her mouth twisted.” I like the comment about using ‘wolfish’ also. This is a great list! I have never even heard half of these words spoken out loud before! Fun read, though… I am surprised that one piece of FACE can wear so many expressions, including expressionless face! I was wondering how many VERBS can be used to express what can be done by FINGERS and HAND … pinch, press, pick …. Look around the Web and you’ll probably find a list. So you still have a few problems even if you have a list like this.Īs for smells, Francisco, smells can be fresh, smoky, rotten, searing, and sulfuric. “He jumped off the Empire State Building into the waiting nets” or “he landed the plane in the East River,” frex. The problem there is that you can get outlandish. They want alternatives to “he grinned” and “he smiled” and “he ran his hands back through his hair.” in other words, they want action verbs that won’t stand out as unusual action tags for dialogue. This is fine, as far as it goes, but most critique groups land squarely on me for using ANY form of “he looked wolfish” or “he grinned wolfishly” (which is, admittedly, an adverb). Francisco Luciano Fernandes on Janu2:32 pmĬould you please tell those words that spell the kind of smells are there in the vocabulary?.I just wanted to tell you something: why don’t you put Google + buttons so I can +1 your articles? I don’t have Twitter or Facebook and I want to show my appreciation. I read your blog on a regular basis because I’m a writer as well. 20 Names of Body Parts and Elements and Their Figurative Meaningsġ8 Responses to “100 Words for Facial Expressions”.Top 11 Writing Apps for iOS (iPhone and iPad).Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below: Wry: twisted or crooked to express cleverness or a dark or ironic feeling Withering: devastating see also wrathfulġ00. Wild eyed: excited, frightened, or stressfulĩ5. Sly: cunning see also furtive and mischievousĩ4. Pleading: seeking apology or assistanceħ4. Pained: affected with discomfort or painĦ2.
Mischievous: annoyingly or maliciously playfulĥ6. Meaningful: to convey an implicit connotation or shared secretĥ4. Leering: see meaningful also, sexually suggestiveĥ2. Hunted: tense as if worried about pursuitĥ1. Hostile: aggressively angry, intimidating, or resistantĤ6. Hopeless: depressed by a lack of encouragement or optimismĤ5. Haunted: frightened, worried, or guiltyĤ4. Grave: serious, expressing emotion due to loss or sadnessĤ3. Grim: see despondent also, fatalistic or pessimisticĤ2. Glazed: expressionless due to fatigue or confusionĤ1. Glancing: staring briefly as if curious but evasiveģ7. Faint: cowardly, weak, or barely perceptibleģ5. Dreamy: distracted by daydreaming or fantasizingģ1. Dour: stern or obstinate see also despondentĢ8. Deadpan: expressionless, to conceal emotion or heighten humorĢ6.
Darkly: with depressed or malevolent feelingsĢ1. Blithe: carefree, lighthearted, or heedlessly indifferentġ4. Blissful: showing a state of happiness or divine contentmentġ1. Blinking: surprise, or lack of concernġ0. Appealing: attractive, in the sense of encouraging goodwill and/or interestĩ. Alluring: attractive, in the sense of arousing desireĤ. First try conveying emotions indirectly or through dialogue, but if you must fall back on a descriptive term, try for precision:ģ. 100 Words for Facial Expressions By Mark Nicholįace it - sometimes you must give your readers a countenance-based clue about what a character or a subject is feeling.